Tramway Bridge dynamic lighting feature now working

The newly installed dynamic lighting feature on the Tramway Bridge in Stratford-upon-Avon, almost entirely funded by Advantage West Midlands, is now working.

The soft palette of LED lighting will enhance the bridge's appearance at night time and help create a more secure environment without daylight clutter or visually obtrusive lighting equipment.

The scheme has been designed and installed by award winning lighting specialists, Urban Projects Ltd, to respect, improve and interpret the industrial heritage, architecture and design of the Tramway Bridge and to preserve its fabric whilst providing safety illumination in a non-invasive and creative way.  Director of Urban Projects, David Gibbons said: “We've created a unique scheme using custom made light fittings that remind people of the original use of the bridge but act as a dynamic and interesting addition to the streetscape all year round. The scheme uses very long life light sources that use a fraction of the energy of traditional lighting."

As the Tramway Bridge is a grade II listed structure within the river's sensitive environment, permission had to be obtained from Conservation Planners at the District Council, The Secretary of State and the Environment Agency before the project was given the 'green light' to go ahead.

The new lighting system will use approximately 25% of the power of the former tungsten halogen festoon lighting system that used to form part of Stratford Christmas Lights' illuminations.

Mick Love, Chairman of Stratford Christmas Lights, said: “I've been shown a demonstration of what the new system is capable of and am looking forward to seeing them in operation throughout the year with a special display to coordinate with Stratford's Christmas lights.  Many people will remember with affection the old string of lights that highlighted the arches of the bridge and it's a pity that the new scheme couldn't do the same.  However, they had reached the end of their useful life and replacing them would have been hard to finance at a time when our funding has been significantly reduced."

Whilst subtle lighting effects will be the norm, the lighting is capable of animation using any combination of colours and animation that can be programmed for specific dates and times. So there will be an opportunity to use specific colours to coordinate with events and festivals in Stratford-upon-Avon.

In 2007, with funding from the Arts Council for England, World Class Stratford commissioned public lighting artist to design a lighting strategy for Stratford-upon-Avon, forming part of the Urban Design Framework which was adopted as a supplementary planning document for the town.

Essentially, the scheme includes the following key elements which will supplement the three existing lighting columns:

• Fitting low energy 'LED' lights to both faces of the bridge to illuminate it as a key feature along the River Avon.
• Installing low energy 'LED' lighting strips in the bridge surface to provide a more uniform spread of light along the bridge whilst also illustrating the original tramway route.
• Renewal of the surfacing and drainage.